The Pomme de Terre River (pronounced ''pohm de TEHR'') is a
[U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data]
The National Map
accessed May 31, 2011 tributary
A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drai ...
of the
Osage River
The Osage River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed May 31, 2011 tributary of the Missouri River in central Missouri in the United States. The eighth-largest river ...
in southwestern
Missouri
Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...
in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
. Via the Osage and
Missouri
Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...
rivers, it is part of the
watershed of the
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it fl ...
.
''Pomme de terre'' is
French for
potato
The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae.
Wild potato species can be found from the southern Unit ...
, a food Indians harvested in the area. Before the French explorers, the
Osage people, who were historically indigenous to the region, had called it a name meaning Big Bone River, referring to the fossils of
mastodons
A mastodon ( 'breast' + 'tooth') is any proboscidean belonging to the extinct genus ''Mammut'' (family Mammutidae). Mastodons inhabited North and Central America during the late Miocene or late Pliocene up to their extinction at the end of th ...
and other ancient creatures which they found along its eroding banks.
Course
The Pomme de Terre River is formed in
Greene County in the
Ozarks
The Ozarks, also known as the Ozark Mountains, Ozark Highlands or Ozark Plateau, is a physiographic region in the U.S. states of Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma and the extreme southeastern corner of Kansas. The Ozarks cover a significant port ...
by the confluence of its short north and south forks, which rise in
Webster and Greene counties, respectively. The river flows generally northward through
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
,
Polk
Polk may refer to:
People
* James K. Polk, 11th president of the United States
* Polk (name), other people with the name
Places
* Polk (CTA), a train station in Chicago, Illinois
* Polk, Illinois, an unincorporated community
* Polk, Missou ...
,
Hickory and
Benton counties, past the town of
Hermitage. In Polk County it collects the short Little Pomme de Terre River, which rises in Greene County and flows generally northwestwardly. In Hickory County a
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
, colors =
, anniversaries = 16 June (Organization Day)
, battles =
, battles_label = Wars
, website =
, commander1 = ...
dam
A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use ...
causes the river to form
Pomme de Terre Lake
Pomme de Terre Lake is located in southwest Missouri at the confluence of Lindley Creek and the Pomme de Terre River (for which it is named). The lake is located in southern Hickory and northern Polk counties, about north of Springfield. Its ...
. It enters the Osage River as an arm of
Truman Lake
The Harry S Truman Reservoir, also known as Truman Lake, is located in the state of Missouri, United States. It is located between Clinton and Warsaw, on the Osage River and extends south to Osceola. The dam is located in Benton County, but th ...
, which is formed by a dam on the Osage.
[ DeLorme (2002), ''Missouri Atlas & Gazetteer'', 2nd ed., Yarmouth, Maine: DeLorme.
]
See also
*
List of Missouri rivers
List of rivers in Missouri (U.S. state).
By drainage basin
This list is arranged by drainage basin, with respective tributaries indented under each larger stream's name.
Mississippi River
Arkansas River
*Mississippi River
**Arkansas River (AR ...
References
Rivers of Missouri
Rivers of Benton County, Missouri
Rivers of Dallas County, Missouri
Rivers of Greene County, Missouri
Rivers of Hickory County, Missouri
Rivers of Polk County, Missouri
Rivers of Webster County, Missouri
Bodies of water of the Ozarks
Tributaries of the Missouri River
{{Missouri-river-stub